Update on Scarlett

We noticed last night that Scarlett The Dog was really working hard to breathe. She seemed healthy otherwise, but just tired of trying to get her next good breath. I called our neighbor, Sue this morning. Sue and her husband Alex have 4 show dogs. I figured she probably knows where to get good emergency care for a dog on a Saturday afternoon. She recommended the Hyattstown Emergency veterinary hospital, in Urbana, MD. We took our good girl to get her chest tapped. The vet there was very nice, but didn't seem too optimistic about us continuing to tap Scarlett to help her feel better. He said that the fluid drawn from her chest this time was very bloody, and most likely she was going to become anemic sooner than later, and start clotting. For today, the tapping was a good thing. Sue ( the neighbor mentioned above) recommended that we take Scarlett to her animal oncologist in Rockville. She said that sometimes Chemo and radiation can help certain types of cancers. Parker and I are talking about what we are going to do next. The last thing we want to do is to make Scarlett more uncomfortable.. Especially if the chemo/radiation won't cure her entirely. We feel like we are just giving up a little bit, but we are also aware of any changes that take place with Scarlett, and hopefully we will continue to make educated decisions for her care. Scarlett continues to rest on the couch after a tough day. I think I'll go join her and give her a little puppy love.